Nigel Kennedy: Classical artists only last "five years"

He's been on the scene in one form or another since he was a teenager, but Nigel Kennedy has hit out at the music industry and said that they don't develop their artists anymore.

The music industry no longer develops their classical artists, leaving them with a professional lifespan of about five years, is what violinist Nigel Kennedy has said in an interview with Metro.

"Record companies are going the same way they’ve gone with pop – if an artist reaches a certain age, they’re replaced by someone younger. Five years is about as long as a popular classical act will last," he said.

Kennedy also hit out at the classical community in general. He received criticism early on in his career for his radical playing style and reinterpretations, about which he said: "the judgments of that community aren’t the be-all and end-all – it’s quite a small and incestuous community."

A UK tour featuring the works of Bach and Fats Waller will be keeping Kennedy busy in September.